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Lots of Questions :)


sanman

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Hi, this is my first post, and I've the FAQ, so I apologize in advance if I do anything wrong.

Firstly, this self-balancing electric unicycle stuff seems really cool - I'd seen some videos on it a few years ago (I guess that's when they first came out?), but forgotten about it.

I don't own one of these, but after recently watching a bunch of videos on them and seeing the advancements, I'm really tempted to get one. I'm 5'8" and 250 lbs, so I'm not sure if I'm suitable. (Yeah, I know - a fatty like me should jog/bike more, not look for ways to ride, but I have flat feet)

Can I ask some questions, if you don't mind?
 

Which models are the most lightweight and carryable?
I think I'd prefer one light enough to carry, rather than towing it like wheeled luggage. To me, the whole attraction is in the portability of the device, so that I could carry it with me if I wanted to, in a napsack or bag if necessary- say, onto a bus, or an airliner. (Yes, I've read the IATA limit of 2 x 160W posted by people in this forum). So the more carryable, the better, to me.
I'd come across a Kickstarter for "Solowheel Iota", and its claims make it look like the smallest & lightest so far, but it also seems rather slow (10mph), and plus it's not come out yet. What are some of the other lower-weight ones.
 

Which wheel size is good for city/suburbs/built-up areas, and maybe also able to handle slightly rough terrain?
According to what I've read, 14" sounds like it fits the bill. What do you all think?
 

Why do some models have 2 wheels instead of 1 wheel?
Is there some kind of stability advantage or other advantage there? Does it maybe help you turn better through differential rotation? I see a number of models offering 2 wheels now - what's the reason?
 

Are there any designers on this forum?
Are there any people on here who actually help make these things? Because I have some ideas I'd like to post. I'm not an engineer, but I like to see continuous product improvement.


Are there any newer models in the pipeline that haven't come out yet, that people are eagerly anticipating and waiting for?
Which ones are they? And what newer improved features do they offer?


Thanks for reading, sorry if any questions are dumb, and nice to meet you! :)

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You can fix flat feet by losing weight and wearing the Vibram Five Finger shoes. You cannot ever lose weight by exercise; study after study shows your chances of doing so is less than 1/2 of one percent which is essentially nil. Instead, seek to reduce weight by eating non-processed foods, using intermittent fasting to drive your insulin resistance down, and calorie counting very carefully.

Two-wheeled unicycles (a contradiction in terms) are simply hoverboards with their wheels inside instead of outside. I like hoverboards but they are not unicycles.

I'm 215 pounds and while I like 14 inch wheels I do fall an awful lot on them because the wheel gets caught or it sinks into the ground.

I have not ridden the Inmotion V8 but I do own the KS16S which, to me, seems the best all-around wheel as it does everything well.

I feel at your weight an IPS i5 is asking for trouble, which is all the more reason to buy one, because if you get one and don't hurt yourself on it then I'll probably buy one too.

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I haven't heard anyone talk about new models coming out in this forum. Heard of a 100V Monster, but I don't think anyone's selling it yet. 

 

Bigger guys need bigger wheels. A Gotway MSuper would carry you comfortably but portability might be an issue.  

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1 hour ago, LanghamP said:

You can fix flat feet by losing weight and wearing the Vibram Five Finger shoes. You cannot ever lose weight by exercise; study after study shows your chances of doing so is less than 1/2 of one percent which is essentially nil. Instead, seek to reduce weight by eating non-processed foods, using intermittent fasting to drive your insulin resistance down, and calorie counting very carefully.

Two-wheeled unicycles (a contradiction in terms) are simply hoverboards with their wheels inside instead of outside. I like hoverboards but they are not unicycles.

I'm 215 pounds and while I like 14 inch wheels I do fall an awful lot on them because the wheel gets caught or it sinks into the ground.

I have not ridden the Inmotion V8 but I do own the KS16S which, to me, seems the best all-around wheel as it does everything well.

I feel at your weight an IPS i5 is asking for trouble, which is all the more reason to buy one, because if you get one and don't hurt yourself on it then I'll probably buy one too.

Hi,thanks for your multi-faceted reply - yeah, my buddy bought the Aviator brand of 5-fingered shoes (Vibram went out of business, apparently). He used them for a short while, but stopped because you can feel the ground too closely (including rocks that you step on - ouch!) Adidas ones are said to be slightly better, because their soles are a little thicker, but they've been discontinued too. Yeah, I'm putting myself on a low-carb diet, because it's the one diet I can stick to (look up recipe for "fathead pizza" - yum!)

Anyway, regarding the wheels - yeah, after seeing the UK Speedy Feet review, I can see that 14" tire would be too flimsy for me. IPS5 looks like some excellent engineering design to achieve that desirable form factor, but it would be useful to be able to handle a gravel road or a dirt path more easily - and even to have a bit more speed. Too bad they can't fit a wider 14"-tire by adding a few cm of width.

And how the heck do you people negotiate curbs, if you're riding on the sidewalk?

 

59 minutes ago, Demian B said:

I haven't heard anyone talk about new models coming out in this forum. Heard of a 100V Monster, but I don't think anyone's selling it yet. 

 

Bigger guys need bigger wheels. A Gotway MSuper would carry you comfortably but portability might be an issue.  

Hi, thanks - what about the IPS S5 which I read about on some other site? It's apparently going to have 16" tires, which will naturally be a bit wider. Anybody know anything about that? Or is 16" still too scrawny for a chubby guy like me?

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3 hours ago, LanghamP said:

You can fix flat feet by losing weight and wearing the Vibram Five Finger shoes. You cannot ever lose weight by exercise; study after study shows your chances of doing so is less than 1/2 of one percent which is essentially nil. Instead, seek to reduce weight by eating non-processed foods, using intermittent fasting to drive your insulin resistance down, and calorie counting very carefully.

Try eating the same as you do now, but reduce the quantities. That's a lot easier in the beginning than completely changing your diet. The problem is we tend to eat too much for our sedentary lifestyle. And of course no "sugar in a can" (Coke, Red Bull ... ) . Those things are killer. Combine this with cardio exercise ( low intensity / heart rate ) and you'll make good progress. But the food part is the most important. Exercise is a few times a week. Food is multiple times a day, every day. I personally lost weight going low-carb, but this is not something you should do forever (don't ask me how I found out ...), but it helps a lot in the beginning.

 

Concerning flat feet. They can't be fixed unless you are 4 years old and your body is still developing. It's a malformation of your feet (trust me, I've got them myself). What really helps is to get insoles for your shoes, made by an orthopedist. I've been wearing them since I was 11 years old (suffered from pain in heels and ankles. Turned out I have flat feet ...) and they correct your foot position so no issues whatsoever anymore. Another advantage is all shoes are comfortable as long as the insole goes in them, since they all feel the same :D 

 

And don't go Kickstarter for this. You'll spend ages waiting for your product and it might underdeliver. There are a lot of good wheels out there. Read through the forums here and choose from what's available. If you start reading around here and have to wait 18 months for your euc you'll go nuts :) 

 

my 2 cents.

 

 

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24 minutes ago, ir_fuel said:

Concerning flat feet. They can't be fixed unless you are 4 years old and your body is still developing. It's a malformation of your feet (trust me, I've got them myself). What really helps is to get insoles for your shoes, made by an orthopedist. I've been wearing them since I was 11 years old (suffered from pain in heels and ankles. Turned out I have flat feet ...) and they correct your foot position so no issues whatsoever anymore. Another advantage is all shoes are comfortable as long as the insole goes in them, since they all feel the same :D 

 

Agreed.  I've always had flat feet but until at least 30 was very skinny.  

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Also, I agree that at your weight, you are going to need the strongest wheels out there.  Which means forget about light and easily portable.  You are going to need a serious -- and pricey -- machine, like the Gotway ACM, MSuper, or Monster, or the KS18.  That's all the more the case if you ever go on hills or over obstacles(like sticks and such on trails), which can cause a sudden increase in power demand. Power is both what you need at your weight in the first place, and also makes riding safer.

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3 hours ago, sanman said:

what about the IPS S5 which I read about on some other site? It's apparently going to have 16" tires, which will naturally be a bit wider. 

I think you have just summed up the entirety of what we know about the IPS S5 as of now. It is, at the very least, still quite a few months away so I think it will be some time before we even know anything more about it. It is being teased as the "sports version" and is expected to be their flagship model. The inference, but not AFAIKS clearly stated, is that it will be of very similar construction to the I5 with 16" wheel, more powerful motor and bigger batteries. If it does have a very similar form factor is the I5 it is by no means certain it will have a wider tyre. I do hope so as the best thing about the IPS LHotz was it's very wide tyre which meant it was great off road.

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2 minutes ago, Dingfelder said:

Agreed.  I've always had flat feet but until at least 30 was very skinny.  

Ahhh... the dreaded "30" ... either you get a beer belly or go bald, or even worse, you get both :P The age where you can't just guzzle away as much as you want from whatever you want anymore.

I also gained weight once I hit that age. When I was 36 I got fed up and lost it all again (and it didn't come back :) ) . And of course that weight doesn't help your knees/ankles ...)

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5 minutes ago, ir_fuel said:

Ahhh... the dreaded "30" ... either you get a beer belly or go bald, or even worse, you get both :P The age where you can't just guzzle away as much as you want from whatever you want anymore.

I also gained weight once I hit that age. When I was 36 I got fed up and lost it all again (and it didn't come back :) ) . And of course that weight doesn't help your knees/ankles ...)

Well. When I was 20 I weighed ~165 lbs, now I'm 50 and weigh ~202 lbs. While probably half of the difference is the muscles of adulthood, the other half isn't.... :crying:
I wouldn't exactly bawl my eyes out losing 20 lbs, but at least I have stopped adding weight.

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12 minutes ago, ir_fuel said:

Ahhh... the dreaded "30" ... either you get a beer belly or go bald, or even worse, you get both :P The age where you can't just guzzle away as much as you want from whatever you want anymore.

I also gained weight once I hit that age. When I was 36 I got fed up and lost it all again (and it didn't come back :) ) . And of course that weight doesn't help your knees/ankles ...)

Yeah.  I approached a more normal weight at first, and was finally able to retain muscle on my body, but then I had to start thinking about whether I wanted what I ate or drank to show up on my belly.  Nothing's free, everything always comes at a cost!

I drink a hell of a lot less beer now, and I worry a lot more about holiday overeating and general snacking.

But you know, one of the things I feel I've lost the most is flexibility.  I used to do yoga and such, but now I'm as tight as any typical middle-aged American male.  Ugh.  And I know getting that back is pretty darn hard.

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Hi!

250 lbs (113kg) requires a strong (I'd say >1000W nominal) wheel if you want a bit of a safety margin or not only go too slow, so basically all the 14 inchers drop out of the race. You can pretty much forget about the "light" aspect in general with EUCs (and the 14 inchers aren't really "light" either except for the IPS i5), trolleying (for which you only need a trolley handle) is the standard when not riding (and lugging them around like unwieldy, heavy rocks is the other standard;)).

The (recently released) Kingsong KS16S (1200W) seems like the right wheel for you - the most compact and portable of the 16 inch wheels (which is considered the best allrounder size), great quality, some nice features (trolley handle most of all). You could also go for the Gotways (ACM, msuper V3, Monster) but these are more rough and good for other things (performance, offroad, ...), I would not recommend them if commuting/carrying/"city use" is your primary idea of how you'd use a EUC (but of course you can do so).

Essentially your idea of EUCs is unrealistic, the (recently released) i5 is really the only wheel that can be considered suitable to carry (if you were 90kg or less, you could think about it). But as you're here already, EUCs are fantastically fun to use, this is the opportunity to simply adapt your idea of how you think you'd use a wheel - which in the end decides which wheel is best for you.

5 hours ago, sanman said:

Are there any designers on this forum?
Are there any people on here who actually help make these things? Because I have some ideas I'd like to post. I'm not an engineer, but I like to see continuous product improvement.

Barely any designers, here or anywhere else some say not even at the manufacturers themselves:P

Just post your ideas here! We'll learn from the questions, and you'll learn from the answers that you severely overestimate the professionalism of the manufacturers;)

--

Oh and losing weight is done by eating (and drinking if sugar is involved) less, nothing else matters, including what it is you consume less of. Just less.:whistling: EUCs are very weight sensitive (which is why everyone goes for that angle here). If you went from your weight to 90 kg (20 kg less) that approximately gives you 25% more of every spec a EUC has (you name it - safe max speed, incline, acceleration, everything). [113/90 = 1.25 - what you lose in weight you gain in EUC response]

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7 minutes ago, Scatcat said:

Well. When I was 20 I weighed ~165 lbs, now I'm 50 and weigh ~202 lbs. While probably half of the difference is the muscles of adulthood, the other half isn't.... :crying:
I wouldn't exactly bawl my eyes out losing 20 lbs, but at least I have stopped adding weight.

Reaching a stasis point is good too, as long as it isn't absurdly heavy for your frame.  If you can do that, you can limit the suck.  Plus a baseline lets you make choices from there and appreciate even small changes.  

Mine is a variable one, because I don't believe in getting on the scale every day or being afraid of a sandwich.  If I eat a little more one day, it's easy enough to eat a little less another day.  Plus heck, I can poop five pounds at a time, eat a pound or more at a time, drink a pound's worth of water in a short period of time, etc., so looking at a scale seems largely pointless to me.  I see people sweating and whining over gaining a pound or gloating over losing one and think, Jeez, you sure are making it hard on yourself.  So much drama!

 

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3 hours ago, sanman said:

Hi,thanks for your multi-faceted reply - yeah, my buddy bought the Aviator brand of 5-fingered shoes (Vibram went out of business, apparently). He used them for a short while, but stopped because you can feel the ground too closely (including rocks that you step on - ouch!) Adidas ones are said to be slightly better, because their soles are a little thicker, but they've been discontinued too. Yeah, I'm putting myself on a low-carb diet, because it's the one diet I can stick to (look up recipe for "fathead pizza" - yum!)

Anyway, regarding the wheels - yeah, after seeing the UK Speedy Feet review, I can see that 14" tire would be too flimsy for me. IPS5 looks like some excellent engineering design to achieve that desirable form factor, but it would be useful to be able to handle a gravel road or a dirt path more easily - and even to have a bit more speed. Too bad they can't fit a wider 14"-tire by adding a few cm of width.

And how the heck do you people negotiate curbs, if you're riding on the sidewalk?

 

Hi, thanks - what about the IPS S5 which I read about on some other site? It's apparently going to have 16" tires, which will naturally be a bit wider. Anybody know anything about that? Or is 16" still too scrawny for a chubby guy like me?

We negotiate curbs by going down or up the curbs with a larger than 14" wheel. ;) Actually, while I'm joking a bit, it is true that the larger and stronger the wheel, the less the problem it has with curbs and pot-holes.

A weight of ~250 lbs limits your choices quite severely. At 202 lbs myself, I would NOT go below 800W nominal power, preferably more. My own wheel has a 16" tyre, a 2kW motor and a 858Wh battery setup.

The problem then is weight. Mine weighs in at almost 40 lbs. That means a trolley or scoliosis. It also means flying with it is a no go.

On the other hand, if you get a 320 Wh EUC to stay within flying limits, you will be limited to slow wheels that can't really take your weight. Power is one thing, you need it to avoid falls that are caused by the EUC not having enough power to stay in balance. But also the smaller the wheel, the flimsier the build.

14" wheels have a tendency to have axles that are not made for people above ~170 lbs or so. We WILL hit potholes from time to time, and we will go up and down curbs. If the forces of a 200-250 lbs guy going down a 4" curb are taken by a halv inch axle, than on one side is perforated to make space for the wires, it goes without saying there will be metal fatigue. Then one day the axle says "CLICK" and you need a new motor. You may also need some new skin if it snaps of abruptly and totally while you're going at speed.

At your weight I would go with an 18" wheel, or at least a 16" wheel from a manufacturer that has as few problems with axle breakage as possible. If you have flat feet, I would recommend MSuperV3, that has both the power you need, the batteries to go for more than a few miles, the sturdiness to let you relax, and pedals big enough to let you actually rest your feet on them.

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5 hours ago, LanghamP said:

Two-wheeled unicycles (a contradiction in terms) are simply hoverboards with their wheels inside instead of outside. I like hoverboards but they are not unicycles.

I have to object to this on technicality grounds. The key feature of hoverboards is that you can tilt each side independently (the rotating joint) and possibly rotate on the spot. So if you were able to tilt the 2 pedals independently and the two tires had two motors acting independently, you would be right. But...B)

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8 minutes ago, Scatcat said:

At your weight I would go with an 18" wheel, or at least a 16" wheel from a manufacturer that has as few problems with axle breakage as possible. If you have flat feet, I would recommend MSuperV3, that has both the power you need, the batteries to go for more than a few miles, the sturdiness to let you relax, and pedals big enough to let you actually rest your feet on them.

I'm with you.  One thing I'd like to add is that you can buy the larger pedals that the MSuper has and put them on both the ACM and the Monster, from my understanding.  So if you like the MSuper big pedals but don't want an MSuper, you have options.

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25 minutes ago, Dingfelder said:

I'm with you.  One thing I'd like to add is that you can buy the larger pedals that the MSuper has and put them on both the ACM and the Monster, from my understanding.  So if you like the MSuper big pedals but don't want an MSuper, you have options.

I wonder if those damn pedals are compatible with my GT16 :D 

That would be something!

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45 minutes ago, Scatcat said:

Well. When I was 20 I weighed ~165 lbs, now I'm 50 and weigh ~202 lbs. While probably half of the difference is the muscles of adulthood, the other half isn't.... :crying:
I wouldn't exactly bawl my eyes out losing 20 lbs, but at least I have stopped adding weight.

When I was 20 I weighed between 140-150 lbs, depending on if I was working out. So I'm not big-boned - I'm just fat now that I've entered my 40s - have to reduce my gut.

 

34 minutes ago, meepmeepmayer said:

Hi!

250 lbs (113kg) requires a strong (I'd say >1000W nominal) wheel if you want a bit of a safety margin or not only go too slow, so basically all the 14 inchers drop out of the race. You can pretty much forget about the "light" aspect in general with EUCs (and the 14 inchers aren't really "light" either except for the IPS i5), trolleying (for which you only need a trolley handle) is the standard when not riding (and lugging them around like unwieldy, heavy rocks is the other standard;)).

The (recently released) Kingsong KS16S (1200W) seems like the right wheel for you - the most compact and portable of the 16 inch wheels (which is considered the best allrounder size), great quality, some nice features (trolley handle most of all). You could also go for the Gotways (ACM, msuper V3, Monster) but these are more rough and good for other things (performance, offroad, ...), I would not recommend them if commuting/carrying/"city use" is your primary idea of how you'd use a EUC (but of course you can do so).

Essentially your idea of EUCs is unrealistic, the (recently released) i5 is really the only wheel that can be considered suitable to carry (if you were 90kg or less, you could think about it). But as you're here already, EUCs are fantastically fun to use, this is the opportunity to simply adapt your idea of how you think you'd use a wheel - which in the end decides which wheel is best for you.

Barely any designers, here or anywhere else some say not even at the manufacturers themselves:P

Just post your ideas here! We'll learn from the questions, and you'll learn from the answers that you severely overestimate the professionalism of the manufacturers;)


Well, I drive a car, so this wasn't going to be a serious commuter solution for me. But sometimes if I take a trip to another city, I won't drive and will take the bus or else fly. Sure, there's always Uber for some situations - but suppose I want to do some sightseeing, or something? 

Gee, I wonder if designers have considered restrictions like airline carry-on weight, and might try to design around that. At least buses don't really have overly onerous restrictions.

As for what's realistic or not, I think these machines have the potential to improve nearly as fast as cellphones are doing. It's just a matter of them hitting a certain threshold of utility/capability, and they'll experience mass-adoption. Once that happens, their improvement curve would really take off.

 

21 minutes ago, Scatcat said:

We negotiate curbs by going down or up the curbs with a larger than 14" wheel. ;) Actually, while I'm joking a bit, it is true that the larger and stronger the wheel, the less the problem it has with curbs and pot-holes.

A weight of ~250 lbs limits your choices quite severely. At 202 lbs myself, I would NOT go below 800W nominal power, preferably more. My own wheel has a 16" tyre, a 2kW motor and a 858Wh battery setup.

The problem then is weight. Mine weighs in at almost 40 lbs. That means a trolley or scoliosis. It also means flying with it is a no go.

On the other hand, if you get a 320 Wh EUC to stay within flying limits, you will be limited to slow wheels that can't really take your weight. Power is one thing, you need it to avoid falls that are caused by the EUC not having enough power to stay in balance. But also the smaller the wheel, the flimsier the build.

14" wheels have a tendency to have axles that are not made for people above ~170 lbs or so. We WILL hit potholes from time to time, and we will go up and down curbs. If the forces of a 200-250 lbs guy going down a 4" curb are taken by a halv inch axle, than on one side is perforated to make space for the wires, it goes without saying there will be metal fatigue. Then one day the axle says "CLICK" and you need a new motor. You may also need some new skin if it snaps of abruptly and totally while you're going at speed.

At your weight I would go with an 18" wheel, or at least a 16" wheel from a manufacturer that has as few problems with axle breakage as possible. If you have flat feet, I would recommend MSuperV3, that has both the power you need, the batteries to go for more than a few miles, the sturdiness to let you relax, and pedals big enough to let you actually rest your feet on them.

 

Well, I saw a video for the Gotway Monster which featured a seat - so that got me wondering about that. I was wondering if these trolley-handle modifications could somehow be adapted into something resembling a bicycle seat? Then if your ride got too tiresome, you could just stop and switch to bicycle seat mode. I dunno, maybe others here have probably expressed similar ideas before, but I'm wondering why this can't be done.

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17 minutes ago, sanman said:

 

Well, I saw a video for the Gotway Monster which featured a seat - so that got me wondering about that. I was wondering if these trolley-handle modifications could somehow be adapted into something resembling a bicycle seat? Then if your ride got too tiresome, you could just stop and switch to bicycle seat mode. I dunno, maybe others here have probably expressed similar ideas before, but I'm wondering why this can't be done.

Both the Monster and the KS18 can be fitted with a seat. It takes some practice to use I understand, I haven't tried something like that myself. But for people going long range, it is supposed to be a relaxing alternative.

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30 minutes ago, Scatcat said:

Both the Monster and the KS18 can be fitted with a seat. It takes some practice to use I understand, I haven't tried something like that myself. But for people going long range, it is supposed to be a relaxing alternative.

If I were a designer, I might look at allowing the top strip of the unicycle's case to peel upward (like a beetle's wing or the hatch on a hatchback) using a locking hinge. That would perhaps make for a cantilevered seat. It would have to be strongly designed, of course. 

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@sanman welcome! Everyone on the forum is motivated to lose weight to get more range on their wheels! :P Over the past two years I've lost about 15 pounds and it definitely makes a difference in range. Over the weekend I did a ride of 32 miles on my KS-14C 840Wh on a single charge and still had about 10 miles left according to the app (but I don't like to push it). Of course I'm 5 foot 7 and 140 pounds at the moment so the only people who outweigh me are the Asian girls the manufacturers use to get unrealistic battery range specs.

To lose weight I did what @LanghamP said and used a low-carb diet with fasting. Once you're used to it you don't get hungry nearly as often.

I like smaller wheels because they're portable and easier to move around if you need to pick up for steps. A good 16-inch wheel should take care of you pretty well. 

I definitely would not make the Monster a first wheel. It's so heavy that it's hard to just hold up and if it falls over you're likely to crack the case. 

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37 minutes ago, dmethvin said:

@sanman welcome! Everyone on the forum is motivated to lose weight to get more range on their wheels! :P Over the past two years I've lost about 15 pounds and it definitely makes a difference in range. Over the weekend I did a ride of 32 miles on my KS-14C 840Wh on a single charge and still had about 10 miles left according to the app (but I don't like to push it). Of course I'm 5 foot 7 and 140 pounds at the moment so the only people who outweigh me are the Asian girls the manufacturers use to get unrealistic battery range specs.

To lose weight I did what @LanghamP said and used a low-carb diet with fasting. Once you're used to it you don't get hungry nearly as often.

I like smaller wheels because they're portable and easier to move around if you need to pick up for steps. A good 16-inch wheel should take care of you pretty well. 

I definitely would not make the Monster a first wheel. It's so heavy that it's hard to just hold up and if it falls over you're likely to crack the case. 

I guess you have two choices - you could lose weight to get more juice out of your wheels... OR you could hit the gym so you can lift a 70lb wheel and just have more juice in your wheels! Sure you may not be able to lose weight by exercising but you could get stronger haha.

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Well, I wondering why EUC can't have a kickstand, like a motorcyle or bicycle does. Perhaps as you unfolded your feet flaps, a kickstand would come down and click in, thus preventing the wheel from tipping over laterally while you mounted it. Then as you accelerated from standstill into motion, that forward motion would push/swivel the kickstand back up, to get it out of the way.

Then as you slowed to a stop, when the wheel drops beneath a very low threshold velocity, the kickstand will fall back down again to lock into place, just as the wheel comes to a stop.

 

 

 

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5 hours ago, sanman said:

Well, I wondering why EUC can't have a kickstand, like a motorcyle or bicycle does. Perhaps as you unfolded your feet flaps, a kickstand would come down and click in, thus preventing the wheel from tipping over laterally while you mounted it. Then as you accelerated from standstill into motion, that forward motion would push/swivel the kickstand back up, to get it out of the way.

Then as you slowed to a stop, when the wheel drops beneath a very low threshold velocity, the kickstand will fall back down again to lock into place, just as the wheel comes to a stop.

We have one of those already - it's called a foot! When you are able to ride OK you do not have any difficulty mounting a wheel and neither do you have any difficulty putting one foot down when you stop. I.e. How many motorbikes have you seen where it's kickstand comes down automatically? There are all sorts of scenarios where it would do more harm than good (not the least transitioning from forwards to backwards) and it really isn't needed - it is just a skill to learn.

interestingly, some EUC's come with training wheels that bolt onto the undersides of the peddles to "help" beginners mount the wheel in the same way as your automated kickstand would. I think I am correct in saying the absolutely universal advice from experienced users is to throw those training wheels away and don't bother fitting them - they actually make learning harder.

i would agree that many wheels manufacturers do seem to ignore the fact that users would like to be able to stand the wheel up when they have dismounted from it so some form of "parking stand" would be a nice to have. One or two wheels do have something but it is one of the areas where owners usually end up making their own bodged solution.

However, if we are talking about design changes, THE single most irritating thing to me about nearly all current EUC's is the absolutely impossible job of fixing a puncture roadside as almost all of them need virtually total dismantling to get at the tyre. I'm sure @Marty Backe would quickly say "fill the tyre with slime" but I've yet to find a source of that in the UK. Every time I go on a long ride, the risk (albeit so far it seems a very small risk) of a puncture is always a worry, getting stranded on foot with a heavy wheel to carry for some miles. Thankfully I'm old enough to have a free bus pass so I do always make sure I have that on me ?

A case design that allowed one side of the wheel to open up clamshell fashion so you can actually get at the tyre (and also inspect the insides for rust, damage and build up of mud etc) would be a huge improvement IMHO.

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Gee, I never thought about that - what if you go trekking out into the wilderness, and suffer a puncture 20 miles out? You might even take a dangerous fall if your tire bursts suddenly in transit.

For smaller gadgets that are more important to us - like cell phones - they ought to be designed with high quality/reliability in mind. Maybe a Kevlar-reinforced tire? Or Vectran? Polyurethane foam tires can't burst, since their interior is foam.

 

http://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/product-news/puncture-proof-install-solid-tannus-tyres-146970

Personally, I think the "solid tire" could be improved by having an air-inflated core at its center.

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